Travel Insurance

[AndyAus]

Hi Guys,

This is my first time posting. I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease a few months ago. I've been on Predacorfatelone (sp?) since then from 50mg down to 5mg (present). After about two weeks on medication I have shown no signs of symptons aside from the side-effects of the medication (acne/weight gain), so as far as I can tell im in remission.

In roughly a month I will be travelling around Europe for 4 weeks. Due to that I have had to apply for travel insurance. After my doctor responded that I may not be fit to travel due to the fact I may go into remission, my insurance company has offered to cover me for everything but Crohn's.

My question is, is travel insurance for Crohn's something i definitely need? and has anyone else had the same kind of problems when travelling?

I'm really not to sure about crohns as I have only had it for such a short period and as far as I can tell my symptons have been mild ( blood in stool, no pain, toilet 3-4 times a day at its worst). I've really had no real bad experience to give me any kind of worry while travelling, however from my doctors advice now im not to sure.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Andy

 

[Dexky]

Andy, I can't imagine anyone on here telling you to ignore your doc's advice, especially being newly dxed. Have you already looked into the cost of this traveller's ins.? Will you still be on the pred by then? If not you will probably be on a maintenance drug that your GI may want to monitor for a while.

 

[AndyAus]

The problem is my next specialist appointment in which I would go onto the maintenance drug is after I get back. So I wont be on anything until then. The insurance company has said it will cover everything except Crohns.

The main issue is I have a feeling I'm going to get the same responce from other companys, and every time i apply i need to pay $60 to see my doctor and get him to sign the application. Its a painful process.....

 

[Rebecca85]

I found cover through a specialist insurance company (that specialises in pre-existing conditions). I had to pay an extra £250 to get the Crohn's covered. But my doctor has said that at this stage there is no reason why I can't travel, I will just need to make an appointment with a couple of weeks to go, and get meds etc. If your doctor is advising you not to travel it could well stop you getting insurance.

Personally I would not want to travel without insurance, as I know I am prone to upset tummys on holiday and I am going to the Caribbean so we would have to pay upfront for any medical care.

 

[merrywidow]

i live in the uk and we went to usa in 2006. i have a stoma and had to have insurance, but when i got quotes for insurance , they were around £900. that was a huge amount of money, it was high as their computers were sayin that a stoma was malignant and not crohns related. so the only way i could get insurance was to go to another insurance company and lie. i had no choice, i wasnt allowed into usa without insurance and my stoma hadnt caused any major problems.

 

[Lisa]

I never knew any kind of insurance was REQUIED for travel.....Is it just from Eurpoe to other countries? I've been from the US to England, Finland (multiple trips) and Sweden and never heard of this.......

 

[Rebecca85]

That is probably because in england we have free-at-point-of-contact care i.e. If you are ill and go to a hospital we would treat you for free (although they can ask non uk residents to pay especially if they think you are abusing the system). I think European countries are the same. Whereas in the USA you have to pay for healthcare, so they don't want to let people into the country who wouldn't be able to pay.

Also I found it difficult to get insurance because I have been admitted to hospital twice in the last 3 months, and so the system says I am high risk. Regardless of the fact that I was misdiagnosed the first time and now I am on medication which is helping. when I finally did get a quote it was over £1000. But I tried about 10 different companies and found this one so it's definately worth shopping around.

 

[DustyKat]

As to the question of insurance: are you from Australia? If so-

When Roo travelled to New Zealand (school excursion) she was able to get insurance through CoverMore. At that time her premium was double that of the other students. It seems that people have had varying success with this company, some have never had any trouble whilst others have been denied.

 

[AndyAus]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the responces. Right now I'm trying another company though I'm not liking my odds as my diagnoses and treatment has all been in the last few months.

I do live in australia and I'm fortunate enough to have dual citizenship with the UK/Aus, however I'm merely thinking of complications while im in other countries. I'm not to sure what kind of medical treatment I would need for Crohn's in the worst situation as I'm still quite new, however it does seem like something i should get covered.

Pasobluff- Insurance isnt technically required but for me I dont think I should travel without it.

Could anyone explain to me what a bad scenario for crohn's would be that i would need urgent medical treatment? Everything so far I have read is that i could be in and out of the toilet all day with cramps but I havent read anything on people being hospitalised urgently. Sorry in advance for any ignorance.

Thanks,
Andy

 

[Tan]

Im actually looking into insurance at present for our trip to Fiji, Im not sure whether to cover myself for Crohns as I have been in remission for a few months and actually on no medication at present for it. My worse fear is more that if I actually got a bug overseas not related to crohns they wouldn't cover me cause they will put it straight down as crohns!! I can imagine the worse issues you could have would be an obstruction or something along those lines that would require you to be admitted to hospital in that case you may miss your holiday or flight back to oz and thats where travel insurance comes in if it covers you for crohns it will cover the extra costs. I could be wrong but that is how I read it. But I just guessing as Fiji will be my first overseas holiday so hopefully someone else will have some better advice. Good luck and enjoy your trip

 

[Rebecca85]

Tan that was my reasoning exactly! Seeing as I always get a funny tummy with cramps and D on hols, how will I know the difference never mind the docs!

 

[rygon]

If you have UK citizenship are you able to getthe EIHC card?? http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcareabroad/Pages/Healthcareabroad.aspx

I went on hol in Jan and got travel insurance for £10 for a week, with putting crohns on it, it went up to £35, but as I wasnt in too much pain and discomfort (toilet 6-8times a day) I decided to risk it. Cover still was valid for anything but crohns related.

Try looking at www.moneysavingexpert.com for some tips for cheaper holiday insurance. Its a UK based website but should be able to use the info for different countries

 

[rygon]

Forgot to say as well, how is your stomach on booze? I was drinking quite a bit of lager and 3 days I had to stop as it was hurting my stomach too much. Went on to cider and vodka and coke and felt much better. Since then ive noticed that if i drink any beer i feel bloated and in pain afterwards (frm 2hrs to 24) vodka and coke is better. Coke does upset my a little bit so try and drink it with orange juice which is fine, and have no probs on cider either. May not apply to yourself but thought it would be good to mention it

 

[girn]

I travel fairly extensively and have never bought the insurance.